The Man Who Saved The World ...!

There are many films in which the decisive act of a single person saves the world - mostly from American production.

But the man in question today saved the world in real life - namely from nuclear extinction!

It concerns the Soviet submarine officer, Captain 2nd rank Vaslij Aleksandrowitsch Archipow ...:





The year is 1962 - the Cuban Missile Crisis is at its height. The two superpowers are ready to fight, both sides have their fingers on the nuclear trigger!

Never before (and never after) has the world been so on the brink of nuclear annihilation as it is these days!

Archipow serves as the first officer on the Soviet submarine "B-59".



The boat is armed with eight nuclear torpedoes and is not far from Cuba, in international waters.

Without having behaved in any way aggressively, "B-59" was suddenly grabbed by three US destroyers and anti-submarine helicopters on October 27, 1962 and violently rammed with practice depth charges to force an appearance for identification.

On the one hand, the American armed forces are not aware of the nuclear armament of the submarine, on the other hand, the Soviet commander, Captain 1st rank Walentin Sawitzkij ...



... based on the bombardment, assume that the war has already broke out.

Sawitskij gives orders to fire the nuclear weapons!

According to Soviet operational doctrine, this order must be confirmed by the first officer (Archipow) and the boat's political officer, Iwan Maslennikow.

Maslennikow says “Yes” but Archipow refuses to confirm this order - on a submarine at the front and under fire, an act of disobedience that is punishable by shooting.

Archipow keeps talking to his commanding officer until he lets his boat emerge - in order to be able to obtain new orders from Moscow over the radio.

Finally the submarine appears - and is promptly photographed by the Americans ...:



Of course Moscow forbids the use of weapons!

If the commander had fired, the US would have responded with nuclear weapons.

Back in the harbor, Archipov was not shot, but awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

He will remain in the Navy - most recently from 1975 to 1985 as Rear Admiral of the Caspian Higher Naval War School.



In 1998 Archipov will die of cancer ...

The whole thing was carefully covered up by both Soviets and Americans and only came out during a historians' conference in Cuba in 2002.

Thereupon the Italian state Archpow awarded twice (2003 and 2005) the Rotondi national price "Angeli del nostro tempo" (Angel of our times) posthumously.

Archipov deserves that, I think...

It's not often common sense prevails over blind obedience. Excellent research Martin, as usual!

Phil

Thanks Martin.

Compared to those days, the world is in a better state today. Not that the newspapers bring much joy, but the threat of total annihilation in minutes is something else.